1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to surgical instruments, and, more particularly, to diagnostic and surgical instruments for use in abdominal, thoracic, vaginal, anal or other surgical procedures that may also include endoscopies.
2. General Background and State of the Art
Certain surgical and diagnostic devices are known for examining vaginal and other cavities. For example, women of a certain age should have a diagnostic pap smear annually. Certain prior art devices, known as speculums, are used which consist of a pair of wide or broad blades.
Also, when such instruments are used in examining a body cavity, such as the vagina, a second instrument is inserted into the vagina through the speculum. Such an instrument is called a lateral vaginal retractor and is used to retract the vaginal sidewalls which normally obstruct the doctor""s view into the patient""s cervix. During a surgical procedure, the surgeon needs to insert a clamp, a source of lighting, a suctioning catheter, and irrigation tube through the speculum, thus further obstructing the surgeon""s view of the cervix which might interfere with the surgical procedure being performed.
In my U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,668, I disclose a surgical and diagnostic instrument which eliminates the need for an external lateral vaginal retractor during vaginal surgery. The instrument is anatomically designed with a narrow oval shape in its closed position to allow it to be inserted comfortably into the patient""s vagina without the discomfort generally associated with a conventional speculum. It also allows the introduction of other instruments such as a light, an irrigation tube, etc. without obstructing the surgeon""s view.
In my pending application Ser. No. 09/578,016, filed May 24, 2000 (pending), I disclose an improvement of the surgical device in my patent wherein the upper blade is U-shaped in cross-section having lateral blades for improved visualization.
In my provisional application Ser. No. 60/241,067, filed Oct. 17, 2000, entitled Surgical Instrument, I disclose a vaginal speculum having a first vertical blade which is hinged and extends outwardly and upward with two lateral blades attached. The second blade contains the tracks for the first blades for adjustable hinging and two mounted rectangular lateral angled braces that permit both lateral blades of the first component to pivot outwardly and increase the tension of the outward portions of the lateral blade. This provides a greater resistance against the tissues that might otherwise bend the distal portions of the blades inwardly thereby obscuring the view of the operator. Also, the lateral blades prevent vaginal and other membranes from cascading inwardly and obstructing the view. Thus, the instruments and operative procedures can be more easily and efficaciously managed through the aperture between the spread-apart four blades.
Thus, I disclose an upper blade having two spaced side lateral blades. The lower blade has two side lateral blades. Although such a speculum has obvious advantages, I find that there is a need for having these upper side lateral blades integral with the upper blade rather than hinged thereto as in my provisional application, and, as will be discussed hereinbelow, have multiple blades in vertical and lateral positions.
In my provisional application Ser. No. 60/286,188, entitled Light Cone and filed Apr. 24, 2001, I disclose a light cone for use with a surgical instrument, such as the speculum in my U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,668 and in my pending application.
There is thus a need for a surgical instrument, such as a speculum, to have multiple blades in vertical and lateral positions along with provisions for a light cone.
It is an object of this invention to provide a multi-bladed, vaginal diagnostic and surgical instrument which is quickly and easily activated to expand the blades with slight rotation movement and with little discomfort to the patient having multiple blades in vertical and lateral positions.
It is still further an object of this invention to provide such an instrument having a portable light cone for illuminating the surgeon""s working area without interfering with the surgeon""s view through the instrument, avoids contamination with the surgical procedure and is away from the containment area and away from the bleeding area and is reusable.
It is another object of this invention to provide such a surgical instrument having a passageway for feeding a suction tube therethrough to suction out blood, smoke or tissue or the like during an invasive procedure without interfering with the surgeon""s view through the instrument.
These and other objects are preferably accomplished by providing a surgical instrument for spreading apart openings of natural orifices or surgically made openings to perform procedures on internal structures and/or organs of a patient. The instrument includes a main body portion having multiple blades in vertical and lateral positions that open to spread apart the area being examined so that a surgical tool can be inserted therein.
The instrument has a light cone associated therewith for illuminating the surgeon""s work area and a passageway through which a tube may be fed to suction out smoke, blood gases, or tissue or the like.